Santam Namibia

S A N TA M N A M I B I A

SANTAM NAMIBIA

Insurance That

Adds Value PRODUCTION: David Napier

Partnering with an insurance provider that is modern, innovative and forward-thinking but comes with a wealth of industry experience is vital for both businesses and individuals.

In Namibia, the leader in this space is Santam Namibia. By focussing on strong people development strategies, this business is delighting customers and driving positive results.

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When the economy is slow, everything is more difficult.

Confidence is knocked, investment is quick to dry up, and a focus on cost management is rapidly installed. Even thriving businesses and individuals recognise the threats and

begin to re-evaluate their strategy.

While a slow economy does not mean that business has to stop, it certainly makes things harder.

In Namibia, one of the world’s least populated countries, the economic climate has left a lot to be desired in

recent years. In April, it was announced that the economy had been shrinking to 10 consecutive quarters. Importing electricity from Eskom in South Africa, and desperately seeking private investment in its energy sector, Namibia faces many challenges.

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INDUSTRY FOCUS: FINANCE

// WE HAVE A BROAD AND SOPHISTICATED MULTI PRODUCT AND MULTICHANNEL DISTRIBUTION OFFERING THAT PROVIDES OUR CLIENTS WITH COMPREHENSIVE COVER THROUGH A WIDE RANGE OF VALUE-ADD PRODUCTS // Central figures from both the public and private sector have weighed in and called for government and business to work together to relieve the situation and encourage economic recovery.

President Hage Geingob has announced a new high-level panel designed to plan economic reform, and leaders from the banking sector have called for stability and certainty to ensure a sustainable recovery even though many admit it will likely take a long time.

Against this backdrop, Namibia’s businesses have struggled. Even the big corporates have not managed to come through unscathed. But for those with a solid footing, and for those which are innovating and supply products and services that customers really need, there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Take Santam Namibia for example.

The local arm of the international insurance business based in Johannesburg, Santam Namibia is the country’s largest and most trusted names in the short-term insurance industry.

With a market share of more than 30%, Santam Namibia has been operating since 1956. Listed on the Namibia Stock Exchange (NSX), this powerhouse insurance business has become a reliable partner for many in Namibia and has developed a strategy to overcome economic peaks and troughs.

“Over the years, Santam has been able to continually reposition and improve itself in the changing business environment, to employ the best people, to provide a relevant offering to clients, and to optimise systems to drive efficiency. This is and will remain at the core of our value proposition,” the company says.

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But insurance – which is still a grudge purchase in many people’s eyes – is often much more difficult to sell when times are tough. It is often the first area of the budget to be investigated when belts are tightened and cheaper options are sought to manage costs.

Santam Namibia navigates this environment by offering a diverse product portfolio to different market segments.

“Santam has managed to build a diverse group that encompasses four business units and an international investment portfolio,” the company says.

“This diversity, coupled with a worldclass scientific underwriting capability, enables the group to steer its way through the ups and downs of the typical underwriting cycle.”

Within this portfolio, commercial, personal and niche insurance requirements are all catered for.

On the personal side, car, buildings, contents and legal products are delivered.

For commercial, business, guesthouse, tourism, leisure and entertainment products are offered; and for niche needs, marine, aviation and corporate property risk is all catered for.

“For commercial insurance, we offer a business portfolio in South Africa and Namibia that serves small to large enterprises by providing flexible and unique commercial insurance solutions that are tailored to suit the needs of entrepreneurs and businesses. We follow a client-centric approach by rating commercial risks according to tailored risk profiles.

“For personal insurance, we have a broad and sophisticated multi product and multichannel distribution offering that provides our clients with comprehensive cover through a wide

range of value-add products. Our policies offer unique benefits to their target segment and can be tailored through flexible excess structures and policy benefits to suit each client’s needs,” the company says.

“For niche insurance, we offer solutions suited for this market’s complex and unique risks. Underwriting these classes requires skilled resources to assess and quantify the risk and exposure, and is evaluated through our underwriting managers and business units. Our strategic intent is to provide specialist products that are client-driven and supported by bespoke underwriting criteria to manage and quantify their risks.”

Insurance is ultimately a people business and people sell insurance, manage insurance and use insurance – without people you have no customers, and without good people inside the business, you cannot develop relationships with customers.

For its entire life in Namibia, Santam has focussed on recruiting, developing, and retaining the best people. With a population of just over 2.5 million but an unemployment rate of more than 25%, skills are not easy to come by. Most employment in Namibia comes from agriculture, mining, infrastructure and tourism so when you find employees for roles in insurance, and you invest in them, it is important to keep them.

“Our employees enable us to provide good client service and to manage our risk pool effectively. Given the reality of a skills shortage in the general insurance industry, there is an increasing need to build and retain a productive and diverse workforce that can respond to changing ways of doing business,” the company explains.

// FOR NICHE INSURANCE, WE OFFER SOLUTIONS SUITED FOR THIS MARKET’S COMPLEX AND UNIQUE RISKS //

Get real insurance FNB Insurance Brokers can offer you far more than just advice. As an experienced and well-established insurance provider, we can offer you insurance solutions to preserve your wealth by protecting your personal assets, backed by excellent service and expert advice.

Protecting your assets and the security of your business should be an important aspect of your business' overall financial plan, and we want to help you make the best choices.

Every life has a value and is worth protecting. We also do Life Planning, because‌ no one knows what the future holds.

Our dedicated team of experts will take the time to understand your needs, guide you on the insurance products best suited to you, and negotiate a premium based on your unique profile for both your personal and your business needs.

Visit www.fnbnamibia.com.na/insurance or contact us on 0 61 299 8233.

INDUSTRY FOCUS: FINANCE

The wider Santam Group has, for several years, been named as a Top Employer for the African continent.

Organised by the Netherlandsbased Top Employers Institute, the commendation is given to those that nurture and advance employees.

“Our comprehensive independent research revealed that Santam Ltd provides exceptional employee conditions, nurtures and develops talent throughout all levels of the organisation and has demonstrated its leadership status in the HR environment, always striving to optimise its employment practices and to develop its employees,” said the Top Employers Institute.

Being labelled a Top Employer for 2019 for the fourth year running, Santam sits proudly among the continent’s elite.

“We believe that the 2019 Certified organisations demonstrate exceptional employee conditions and encourage the development of these practices by putting their people first. These

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companies help enrich the world of work with their outstanding dedication to HR excellence, and because of this, they are recognised as an employer of choice,” said Top Employers Institute CEO David Plink.

Billy Elliott, Top Employers Institute Manager: Africa agreed, saying: “We have seen a progression of HR in Africa over the last few years, and it is our role to empower and advance people strategies across the world.

We are driven not just to certify but to benchmark and connect outstanding employers around the world.”

For Santam Namibia, stringent and productive HR is not a choice, it’s a necessity. “Scarce skills development is an issue that requires action at national, industry and company level. Only when contributing on all three levels will companies benefit and employees and government be able to achieve success.”

By installing a culture surrounding the values of excellence, humanity, integrity, innovation and passion,

Santam Namibia believes it can attract, develop and retain first class employees that help to drive results for the company and for customers.

In 2018, results for the Santam Group were largely positive despite a challenging economic picture across southern Africa.

Up to the year ending 31 December 2018, Santam realised Growth of 7% in conventional insurance gross written premiums to R27.7bn, conventional insurance underwriting margin of 9.2%, and return on shareholders’ funds of 31.8%.

Compared to 2017, these results were warmly welcomed.

Group CEO, Lizé Lambrechts said: “The 2019 period will be the final year of our Vision 2020 strategy. We will use the period to define our new strategy for 2020 and beyond. Our strengths remain our diversified footprint, people, capital strength, recognised brand, technical expertise and ability to grow business flows outside of South Africa.”

SANTAM NAMIBIA

Going forward, Santam is perfectly positioned to thrive in Namibia.

Already recognised as an industry leader, the company is prepared to grow as the industry booms. Last year, Fitch Solutions, a market research and analysis buisness said that Namibian insurance is ready to develop. “We

// AT SANTAM, WE BELIEVE IN A SIMPLE PRINCIPLE - THAT INSURANCE IS SOMETHING THAT SHOULD ADD VALUE AND PEACE OF MIND, NOT QUESTIONS, UNCERTAINTY, PARAMETERS OR EXCUSES //

envisage stable growth in the overall gross premiums in 2019 and over the five years to 2023. The overall outlook for the Namibia insurance industry remains stable with a series of drivers supporting our positive forecast. The macroeconomic headline growth will continue to support a steady uptick in premiums and rising consumer and investor sentiment along with economic modernisation and infrastructure investments will bode well for the commercial sector requirements.”

PWC agreed highlight Namibia as a nation with particularly low insurance penetration. saying: “Africa’s insurance industry is largely underdeveloped, and insurance penetration levels are very low by global standards.

“The demographics of the population and their changing behaviours in a world dominated by connected devices, the internet, and social media, all combine to make access easier and increase penetration levels.

“Insurers surveyed in South Africa

and other African markets expect decent increases in both life and non-life gross premiums over the next three years.

“New multichannel approaches and product design based on knowledge of customers and their needs are required.”

For Santam, this burgeoning industry has been home in Namibia for more than six decades. The future looks bright and, despite economic drawbacks, as long as Santam can do what it always has, then there is no reason why this successful organisation cannot continue to dominate while furthering its industry-leading position.

“At Santam, we believe in a simple principle - that insurance is something that should add value and peace of mind, not questions, uncertainty, parameters or excuses,” the company ensures.

WWW.SANTAM.NA

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